About

Countercurrent is currently working on our first full-length album, Exchange.

Who even is this "Countercurrent"?

Countercurrent is a duo based in Western Washington that has been delighting contra dancers and concert audiences for nigh on a decade. Composed of Alex Sturbaum (guitar, vocals) and Brian Lindsay (fiddle, feet, vocals), we incorporate Irish, American, French-Canadian, and pop influences into our music to create a high-energy and dynamic sound!

What's Exchange all about?

Our music has always been about exchange; about the flow of musical ideas between the two of us, the exchange of energy between us and the dancers, and the cultural exchange that comes of the blending of different folk traditions.

This album's goal is to capture the energy and dynamics of our live sound, where the exchange of ideas is at its hottest and most alive, with tools that are unavailable to us in a live setting*.

Cool! So what goes into making this album?

We've been recording through the spring at Studio 4123 in Seattle. We've almost completed the tracking and a significant portion of the mixing. We are really excited about the tracks we've put together, and things are already starting to sound really good!

Once the album is fully recorded and mixed, we've been lucky enough to engage the abilities of Tonal Park Studios in Maryland to do the mastering. The project is on track to be finished by mid-September of 2018.

How are you paying for this?

That's where you come in!

We've been very cost-effective with this whole process, but making an album is always an expensive endeavor. We're trying to raise $4500, which will cover:

Engineering fees

Mastering fees

Permissions and licensing fees

Production of the physical album

We chose Kickstarter specifically because we have always been a community-focused band; we owe all the success we've had so far to the wonderful traditional music and contra dance communities that have supported us over the years. In making this album, we wanted to involve these communities directly.

I want to help out, but I can't afford to donate. What can I do?

The success of a crowdfunding campaign like this is directly tied to how many people it can reach. Regardless of whether or how much you can contribute, it would mean a lot if you could help get the word out! You can do this by liking or sharing the link to this Kickstarter campaign on social media, or sending a personal email to friends who might be interested. Also, tell your friends!

*banjos

Risks and challenges

Every recording project is complicated and difficult, and there's always the chance that unexpected things will come up. We have completed several professional studio recording projects as members of other bands, and produced an EP as Countercurrent, so we are confident in our ability to keep the project within budget and on track.

Kickstarter is an all-or-nothing platform. That means that if we don't make our goal, the album won't get funded. However, if we can get enough people involved, we can make this happen without anyone needing to give more than they feel comfortable with. With that in mind, please consider sharing this with your friends, family, and anyone you might know who loves traditional music and independent artists!

Kickstarter is not a store.

Pledge $50 or more
About $50

Supporter Package

A signed copy of the new album, an extra album (either a second copy of the new one, a copy of Alex's solo album, or a copy of Gallimaufry's full album), plus three stickers, digital download of the new album, and bonus tracks.